Meeting three of our group really solidified our design. Over the night, we had a completed board with all the spaces and sections well laid out – the first true production prototype. The board was built taking into consideration the last day’s tests and what we thought would be an appropriately lengthy board.
When we first got together, we discussed the idea of adding a few special cards that could dramatically affect game play. This led to two new cards: one would move every player back 7 spaces and the other would force the player in the lead to switch places with the player furthest from the end. Another new idea, that radically changed the game, changed the rules concerning the obstruction places. Whereas they originally were permanent and could not fully block off a path, they were now the complete opposite. Obstructions could be placed on any space, even if they block off a path. Now, a player could actually land on an obstruction. When you come to an obstruction, you may move on top of it. Doing this would force you to end your movement on that place, but it would remove the obstruction from the board.
With our recent amendments, we drew up the cards and sat to play. Within a few minutes of beginning to play, we all decided that the first section (the road) was far too long. We cut out about 1/3 of the spaces and started the game over. For the most part, everything went smoothly. The new rules regarding the obstructions proved to be a very wise move. Where before a player couldn’t block a path, this game, full walls were constructed, making it, well, very frustrating – but not the bad kind. This created new strategies, such as blocking off spaces behind one’s self, screwing over the player in the “short cut” (which proved to make a very balanced game), or simply frustrating another player by hindering them for the hell of it. Progression was still slow, but it was steady. The new cards were a nice addition, as they could change the game on the fly. We did decide, however, that moving all the players back 7 spaces was too much, so we cut it back to 5 (which seemed to work much better).
We did find a way to end the game. At the end of the board were three spaces labeled 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. These represented three different flights, and could frustrate the players who might have to move backwards to secure a place in the top 3. We tested the game a total of three times this day, and we’re very happy with our game’s direction. It was now ready for others to play, which I will comment on in my next post.
Heres a few shots of our illustrious board and our testing attached.
Until then,
-Connor
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